Star team Perugia too high barrier for ACH Volley Ljubljana
The opening match of the group stage of the elite Champions League was played between Sir Sicoma Monini Perugia and ACH Volley Ljubljana at the Pala Barton Arena in Perugia, Italy. The team from Perugia won convincingly with a score of 3:0, with 13 aces in three sets.
Perugia - Pala Barton Sports Hall, 1500 spectators, referee: Koen Luts (Belgium), Siniša Ovuka (Bosnia)
Sir Sicoma Monini Perugia : ACH Volley Ljubljana 3 : 0 (19, 16, 19)
Sir Sicoma Monini Perugia: Giannelli, Herrera 11, Rychlicki, Leon, Piccinelli (L), Sole 9, Russo, Colao (L), Resende, Semeniuk 10, Plotnytskyi 15, Ropret 4, Cardenas 5, Mengozo 3. Caoch: Andrea Anastasi.
ACH Volley Ljubljana: Mejal, Šket 9, Mašulović 5, Todorović 1, Bošnjak, Koncilja 3, Šestan, Kovačič (L), Gjorgiev 9, Videčnik 1, Kök 4, Šen 3. Caoch: Radovan Gačič.
The Dragons offered good resistance to the star team of Perugia in the opening minutes of the game, which got a significant advantage on Plotnytskyi's serve (13:10), to which the Ljubljana coach Gačič reacted with the first half-minute break. This did not stop the excellent Ukrainian receiver, who continued with his powerful serves and scored two more consecutive aces (15:10). Kök with an attack and Koncilja with an outstanding block reduced the Ljubljana players' deficit to two points (15:13). After another ace, this time by Herrera, the visitors' coach again called a timeout. This did not stop the home team's strong attack - Sole closed the set with a strong attack (25:19).
At the start of the second set, Perugia volleyball players led 7:3 thanks to some very strong opening shots. Even after the break, Herrera did not let the visitors' coach distract him and continued with some excellent serves (10:3). Šen, who came in instead of Kök, brought the necessary energy to the Dragons and reduced the deficit with a successful attack and an ace immediately afterwards (14:9). The favoured Perugia players played at their own pace in the second part of the set and, after Ropret's attack, were convincingly better in the second set as well (25:16).
At the start of the third set, the guests from Ljubljana played better and took a 3:1 lead after strong serves from Šen. Two efficient attacks by captain Gjorgiev brought the Dragons to a three-point advantage (2:5). The home players caught the Ljubljana players on the seventh point and took the lead. The Slovenian champions tied the score on the 14th point after a great block by Mašulović. Sole, with another Perugia ace, increased the lead to four points (21:17) at the end of the third set, and a few moments later Cuban opposite Herrera did the same for a 23:18 lead. The match was decided by Cardenas (25:19) with 12 Perugia aces.
Statement of ACH Volley Ljubljana coach Radovan Gačič: "What we expected to happen happened. We wanted to tame the opponent's serve to some extent throughout the match. We just couldn't parry them in that element. When it came to the game, we were able to play certain things. They have one of the best receiving lines in the world and that's where the difference was made."
ACH Volley Ljubljana's Nikola Gjorgiev: "The first match in the Champions League, which we unfortunately lost against Perugia. We were simply bombarded with serves and we made a few mistakes ourselves. Perugia is the strongest team in our group, and we need to resolve the health problems that are plaguing us as soon as possible and look forward to the next matches that await us. We will stay positive, continue to train hard and prepare well, first for Saturday's match against Panvita and then for the new Champions League match in a week's time at home."
Statement from Sir Sicomo Monini Perugia's A player Gregor Ropret: "One hell of a game for us. We got a chance with players who don't spend that much time on the floor, but we proved that this is a top team and that we have a lot of players who can step in at any moment. As for the meeting with ACH Volley, it's really special because I have a lot of friends from the national team as well as from the club. It might have been a bit difficult to play against them at the beginning, but at the end of the day we are all professionals and I think we can both be happy."